Many PETA members dream of meeting PETA celebrity supporters like Moby and James Cromwell, but Nettie Schwager actually did it! She won two tickets to PETA’s star-studded 35^th anniversary gala for her lifelong commitment to helping animals. Here, she tells us what the big night was like:

I subscribe to a blog called the Vegan Strategist written by a Belgian activist named Tobias Leenaert. One of his blog posts was about an imaginary vegan island. On this island, everyone is vegan and every product consumed is vegan, and it’s a wonderful place to live. In the blog, Mr. Leenaert asks if you would choose to live in this vegan paradise.

My answer would be “no,” because I want to be in the nonvegan world, trying to make things better for animals and trying to have an impact. Although I would not live on the island, I would definitely visit.

In the real world, there is no vegan island, but there are mini vegan islands like vegan restaurants, vegan festivals, online vegan sites, and various events. I love to visit these mini islands. They give me respite, they are fun, and they help me to recharge.

Nettie on thee red carpet with PETA’s “cow”

PETA’s gala was the best of all worlds. It was a fun night out on a vegan island (of sorts), and at the same time, it was about fighting animal abuse in the world. And putting the two together makes for quite an evening.

First was the cocktail reception with yummy appetizers. My favorite was the endives stuffed with walnuts and pomegranate seeds. It was also fun to mingle—people were friendly, and we all shared a bond based on wanting to help animals. Among others, I met the woman who runs Happy Trails Farm Animal Sanctuary in Ohio. Next was the delicious gourmet vegan dinner.

This was followed by the awards ceremony. What made it for me was that these celebrities use their fame to help animals.

Nettie with animal defender John Salley

 …and with Moby

I wish I had taken notes; there were many speakers, but a couple of things that stand out were that Ingrid Newkirk said that the most important thing is kindness. Such a simple thought, but so beautiful and important. Moby talked about how his life is dedicated to the cause of helping animals. Each speaker talked about some aspect of animal protection and fighting cruelty. Another speaker talked about watching “Glass Walls” and awakening to what he needed to do.

After the awards ceremony, I have to admit, I did some celebrity “hunting”—excuse the term. Everyone I approached was gracious and accommodating and nice. I took pictures with a number of celebrities.

… and with PETA pal James Cromwell

Next was the Paul McCartney concert. He started off the concert singing the birthday song, which he was singing to PETA, but as far as I was concerned, he was singing it to me since it was two days before my 60^th birthday. Turns out that Jane Velez-Mitchell and I were born three days apart, as she just had her 60^th the day before.

The Beatles were a big part of my life growing up. And I wanted to marry Paul when I was a kid. Then later, when Paul and Linda started advocating for animals, that confirmed my love for him and Linda.

So seeing Paul was a big deal. And I was close up for the concert. Paul said that we shouldn’t be eating animals. He sang an animal rights song that he wrote, too. I also got to see Beck, who came up and sang with Paul. It was all very cool.

And speaking of Jane Velez-Mitchell, she has a website called Jane Unchained where she uploads videos about animal issues. She asked me to share her videos, so I want to mention it here.

I am so happy that I got to attend this event. I am grateful to the generous donor of our tickets. It was not only a fun night and a memorable birthday treat but also so much more because it was all about helping animals.

Written by Nettie Schwager